TORONTO — The Ontario government has officially broken ground at Pape Station, marking the start of construction to build a new interchange station connecting the Ontario Line with the TTC’s Line 2 (Bloor-Danforth). The new subway line will deliver better, faster and more reliable transit throughout the Greater Toronto Area, relieving gridlock on roads and the existing transit network.
“The Ontario Line Pape Station will be a critical interchange for commuters by cutting some travel times by more than half and helping reduce gridlock for drivers across the city,” said Prabmeet Sarkaria, Minister of Transportation. “Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government will continue to get this historic project done, creating thousands of good-paying local jobs and ensuring Toronto’s place as a world-class city for generations to come.”
Construction at Pape Station is now underway with work to build the foundations required for excavations that will ultimately connect the two subway lines. The new station will serve tens of thousands of commuters every day, facilitating more than 9,000 transfers during the morning rush hour alone and reducing crowding on Line 1 (Yonge-University) by 15 per cent and Line 2 by over 20 per cent.
“Pape Station will become a crucial link for transit users, connecting the TTC’s Line 2 with a new route downtown. This interchange will make traveling within our city more comfortable and convenient,” said Julie Dabrusin, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Member of Parliament for Toronto-Danforth on behalf of Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities. “Building strong, inclusive and affordable communities starts with reliable public transit.”
Once complete, the 15.6-kilometre Ontario Line will have 15 stations, running from Exhibition Place through the downtown core and connecting to the Eglinton Crosstown LRT. The line will offer more than 40 connections to other subway, bus, streetcar and regional train services, bringing 227,500 more people within walking distance of transit and reducing daily car trips by at least 28,000.
“The future Pape Station, and the rest of the Ontario Line, will help connect more communities to rapid transit in our city,” said Olivia Chow, Mayor of Toronto. “It will help more people access employment and local businesses, as well as commute to work or school. More public transit means more opportunities and less congestion. I look forward to the progress at Pape and beyond.”